Talent is one thing.
Bryan Murray knew entering this season his Wheeler team had an abundance of it.
Getting that talent to sacrifice for the greater good? That can be another thing entirely.
But his players, realizing their vast potential, had little trouble buying into the team-first concept for the Bearcats. And Murray, the Post-Tribune 2017 Girls Soccer Coach of the Year, facilitated the process.
Senior defender Frani Zeitler praised Murray’s performance.
“He’s really been a great supporter of everyone on the team,” she said. “He took a different approach this year. We were told to keep a more positive attitude and work for each other. It made all the difference.”
Wheeler (21-1) won the program’s first semistate title to earn its first trip to the state finals. The Bearcats, who spent most of the season ranked No. 1 in the Class A coaches poll, suffered their only loss in the title game, a 1-0 heartbreaker in overtime to Evansville Mater Dei.
“It was an amazing year,” Murray said. “We have very good players, and everyone in the area knew that coming into the year. It’s still a matter of being unselfish and doing the work.
“We have a lot of strong personalities and we have a lot of ability, but the best thing about this team, they didn’t mind sharing minutes, they accepted their roles and they truly went to work with each other. They meshed, the closest team I’ve had here. Their unselfishness is the key, the reason we were in the position we were in. It’s refreshing.”
The Bearcats defeated Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian 2-0 at semistate, giving Murray his 100th win in six seasons at Wheeler after 10 years at Muncie Central and two at LaPorte. Wheeler beat rival Boone Grove 5-1 in a regional final for their first title since 2014 after the Wolves scored the first goal.
Indeed, if Murray knew his team was special from the outset, he knew it was special after the Bearcats posted a 4-1 win Sept. 9 at West Lafayette, one of the state’s top 2A teams. Wheeler fell behind 1-0 in the opening minutes before storming back to take control.
“Looking at teams from the past, we’ve always been pretty strong,” Murray said. “But teams in the past wouldn’t have responded that way. There was no panic. Our confidence showed. That answered a lot of questions.”
The Bearcats outscored opponents 133-12 with 11 shutouts.
They drew motivation from the way last season ended, losing in penalty kicks in a sectional final to Andrean. The 59ers went on to win a state title, the Region’s first in girls soccer, before winding up in 2A because of the success factor in this season’s debut of the three-class format.
The Bearcats nearly made it two area state champions in as many seasons.
“The result wasn’t what we wanted, but it was fun to be part of the process,” Murray said. “From day one, it was the most enjoyable season I’ve had as a coach. I’m just happy their work paid off. I couldn’t be more proud of 18 girls.
“If you would’ve told me at the beginning of the year this is what was going to happen, I would’ve taken it in a heartbeat. It was an incredibly fun ride. You can’t recreate the state finals atmosphere.”
The Bearcats started three seniors, four juniors, three sophomores and a freshman, so they could make a return appearance with Murray at the helm.
Junior forward Lyric Green paid Murray the ultimate compliment.
“He’s the reason we made it to state,” Green said.
Twitter @MichaelOsipoff
